Inflation rises at fastest pace in six years

Inflation rose at the fastest pace in six years in May, the Labor Department reported Tuesday.

The consumer price index rose 0.2 percent from April and 2.8 percent from a year ago, the fastest pace for inflation since February 2012.

{mosads}

Analysts told Bloomberg that the figures do not mean that the Fed Reserve would necessarily increase the rate of interest hikes.

Tuesday’s report “provide[s] further evidence that inflation is moving towards the Fed’s objective,” and that the Federal Reserve will continue on its gradual rate-hike path, said NatWest Markets economist Kevin Cummins. 

Cummins called the figures “a reminder that you don’t need to necessarily get more aggressive in your approach because wages haven’t accelerated as much as they have in the past” in an interview with Bloomberg.

It was reported last month that inflation targets had reached the threshold for future Fed rate hikes, suggesting the agency could move to address inflation soon.

Gas prices saw a 1.7 percent spike in May after a gain of 3 percent in April, Bloomberg noted.

The news service added that a separate Labor Department report released Tuesday showed that average wages did not rise over the last 12 months, while real average hourly earnings fell 0.1 percent from last year.